Quick question about adding sand to my tank.

[chris009]

I filled my 90 gallon and sump with water and had the depth of sand that i wanted in each. However, adding the water decreased the depth of my sand. So, I'm going to add some more sand tomorrow when I can get some more. My question is this: Do I need to turn my return pump off when I add my sand to my sump and tank?

 

[rcoultas]

you should turn it off to add any to the sump to prevent damaging the pump(s) - in the tank you will just create a big cloudy mess for a while.

 

[chris009]

So I should keep my pump off while the sand is settling in the sump and tank? I've had the water circulation for a while now with the water being murky. I hope I didn't cause any problems.

 

[rcoultas]

Once you have put the sand into the sump you'll be fine - the cloudiness (fine particulates) will not hurt the pump and will settle after a couple of hours. do you have any stock in the tank or live rock ?

 

[chris009]

I don't have anything besides sand, salt, and water so far. I just set it up about 4 hours ago. Hopefully I will add liverock tomorrow

 

[rcoultas]

you should wait a bit for the live rock IMO unless you are buying LFS fully cured rock that you can get to your tank within an hour or so - otherwise you will have problem due to not having cycled the tank and allowing any bacteria colonization.

 

[chris009]

I'm planning on getting about 40 pounds of live rock that is cured and 10-20 pounds of uncured rock. Do you think Ic ould add that to the tank tomorrow?

 

[rcoultas]

The cured rock could be added and would actually help in the cycling of the tank but you should not add any uncured at this time - you need to cycle the tank first - if you must buy the uncured rock you can cure it in a seperate container but there will still be some issues in adding it to such a new tank system. The fully cured live rock will have the living organisms in it and the die off should already be gone thus preventing or minimizing the ammonia spike that would hinder your tank's cycling. Honestly, I think the best thing is to let the tank fully cycly first and then look into live rock. This hobby is one that requires a lot of patience unless you can replace it with a lot of expendable income, but the rewards for that patience are worth the effort IMO

 

[chris009]

So, by adding the live rock that is already cured, I will help the tank cycle? It seems like I should at least add some live rock to help the cycling correct?

 

[rcoultas]

Yes - many recomend it - smell the rock when you go to get it - if it smells funky then it is not fully cured - if it smells more like the ocean then it'll be good - but do not add uncured rock at this point - wait until the tank has cycled and then you can add a little at a time directly to it. GL

 

[earlybird]

I would do it the opposite. Add the uncured and let it cure and help your tank cycle. Then add the cured. If you add the uncured after it is true that it will help breakdown the ammonia from the uncured rock. However, there's no way to tell how much die off you'll have and how much your ammonia will spike. Too large of a spike can harm the nitrifying bacteria and any good hitchhikers that come attached to the cured rock.